Llangollen drills for locomotive water

The Llangollen Railway believes that it has scored an unusual railway preservation ‘first’, with the drilling of an 82ft borehole at Corwen to provide water for locomotives reaching the end of its western extension. Dragon Drilling (Water & Energy Ltd), a Corwen-based firm specialising in renewable energy projects, has been engaged to do the job, with the first stage - providing the capped borehole itself - due to begin on January 23 and take an estimated three days. The next two stages will be to install piping to the embankment at the eastern end of the under-construction Corwen terminus, and a newbuild GWR-style ‘parachute’ water tower. The latter is the subject of an appeal, with nearly 50% of the estimated £20,000 cost already raised by project supporters. The borehole is needed because extraction of water from the nearby River Dee is not an option, and a connection to the town supply was deemed too expensive - but a retired professional hydro-geologist, who volunteers with the project, suggested tapping into the high water table below the Corwen flood plain. Having studied geological records of the area, Dragon Drilling is confident there will be sufficient reserves to satisfy the LR’s requirements indefinitely - and that the soft water will not require treatment. Project spokesman George Jones said: “It is thought that the installation of this borehole is a first for a heritage railway, although we will be pleased to hear if, when and where others may have been provided.”